The Elder Scrolls Online Previews

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Written by WorstUsernameEver on March 19th, 2013

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I'd love to be wrong about this, and a few hours clearly isn't anything like enough time to get the measure of a whole MMORPG. It, however, is plenty of time to be disappointed by its direction. It's not that TESO isn't polished, professional or well crafted - in most of the details, it's as strong and accomplished and well-crafted as anything else out there. From the sections I got to play and the higher-end content demoed though, it feels like an MMO given an Elder Scrolls makeover, not The Elder Scrolls reinvented as an MMO.

Expecting Skyrim-style world simulation, freedom, depth and player agency is unrealistic in a game that has to handle thousands of players messing around, and unless things change radically as the story progresses, TESO doesn't try for that. Its world has an empty vibe to it, with very little interaction density and quest-givers just sitting around holding out for a hero. For the Daggerfall Covenant faction's starting area, the island of Stros M'Kai, that means helping a group of pirates rescue kidnapped colleagues and stealing goodies that inevitably don't mean much booty despite you doing all the hard work.

Want to skip out on that and swim down to the Summerset Isles instead? Or cross the world to see if Vvardenfell needs a hand? Tough. You can't even leave the island until you've done a generic fantasy heist made ridiculous by seeing several other people simultaneously bopping around in the same disguise to raid the same lockbox. There are a couple of moral choices, and optional assignments like rescuing characters who reappear later on based on whether or not they're still busy being tortured, but TESO starts with the expectation that you'll be happy to follow its lead rather than forge your own path.

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After kicking Molag's Bals, a New Game Plus type option opens up, allowing access to harder, high-level versions of the other two factions' zones (populated by your side, via a story twist yet to be revealed) sprinkled with excellent endgame loot for solo players to pick up. In this way, one character can see all the solo content and everyone can acquire top gear via regular PvE. It's a clever idea, although earning top-tier loot this way is likely to be a lonely pursuit by the third and toughest run, with only each faction's most hardcore PvErs left for company. There'll be dungeons too, instanced and public. The developer wasn't ready to talk about raid-type content, however.

They certainly get the ambiance right, beginning with my arrival on the parched island of Stros M'Kai via a ship in the vein of Morrowind, as well as in the countless NPCs I encountered with fully voiced choice-based dialogue options. Moments of beauty were many, particularly when I made my way to the leafy orcish island of Betnikh around level 5. The serene interface recalls the immersive simplicity of Oblivion's display of health, magicka, and stamina, although number-conscious MMO veterans can activate a more cluttered interface by clicking the Alt button. What little I saw of crafting cooking, specifically involved a system of experimentation similar to that found in Skyrim. The questing, too, went far beyond throwaway text to justify killing the pirates of Dwemer I encountered; at times it affected the development of my own story progression. In one, for instance, I helped rescue a thief named Jakarn from prison and then recapture his stolen gem, only to find a grumpy orc named Moglurkal waiting outside the dungeon for us and demanding the return of the jewel. In contrast to other MMORPGs, I had the option to lie about having the jewel, and I took it. Had I not, I wouldn't have seen Jakarn popping in to help me and give me new quests on Betnikh.

My four or so hours of hands-on gameplay in ESO brimmed with moments like these, and the choices felt much more meaningful than the simple light/dark options of Star Wars: The Old Republic. Even better, you don't have to worry about your punky leveling buddy forcing story decisions on you that you don't want to make. I saw this most prominently when a colleague I was grouped with made different decisions as to how to handle a poisoned ship captain; I gave her an antidote and let her live, she let her die. But even though we were grouped and in the same room, I saw events unfold differently, and later, the captain came to my aid when I needed her help. I'm looking forward to seeing how it unfolds throughout the whole game, as I found that ESO offered a rewarding single player storyline that never comes close to ditching social elements so vital to MMOs. In fact, with open mob tagging, shared servers, and spell combos that require two or more players, it promotes it.

The UI is among the most minimalistic I've seen in an MMO. The only persistent on-screen items are a crosshair, a minimap, and a small quest tracker. Health, stamina and magicka bars along with the hotbar appear during combat or when you're wounded, but otherwise the focus is on the world. There are no damage numbers or debuff indicators for enemies beyond what is visibly happening to them. At present, the game could do with better feedback I can get behind the idea of toning down typical MMO on-hit fireworks, but they need to be replaced with something and at the moment it's not quite there.

Dialogue takes place in a zoomed-in first person similar to Skyrim, with a slightly expanded dialogue menu that more closely resembles Morrowind. It's all fully voiced, but facial animation is a bit rough at the moment.

The inventory and skill menus follow Skyrim's trend toward representing as much in-world as possible. Bringing either of these up zooms the camera in on your character in the world, who then effectively acts as your paper doll for equipping items.

Combat, while not as impactful as Skyrim, is not based on MMO-style rotations. As in any of the post-Morrowind TES games, you swing your weapon (or fire your bow or staff) with the left mouse button and block with the right. Holding attack charges up a powerful strike, and attacking while blocking results in a spell-interrupting bash. If you manage to block an enemy's telegraphed power attack you'll stun them, and your subsequent blows do more damage.

My play session covered the earliest stages of the Daggerfall Covenant starting area, one of three available at the beginning of the game. Most significantly, playing the game felt less like an existing MMO with an Elder Scrolls skin, and more like an Elder Scrolls game that has added multiplayer features. I could (and did) play through several missions on my own, and they were indistinguishable from the quest types offered in a game like Skyrim. Fighting creatures, performing voluntary quests for extra experience, and upgrading my skills felt easy and familiar, especially once I switched to first-person perspective. The third-person perspective animations have gotten a significant upgrade, making less of a gulf between it and first-person but still appearing somewhat awkward.

Midway through my play session, I voluntarily paired up with another player and we quested together. This didn't significantly alter our play styles, though we did find that sometimes quests would be roped off if we were at different stages of our progression. (Bethesda later assured us that this bug was unintentional, and would be mended as it finds individual cases during development.)

One curiosity regarding the difference between my own narrative and others came up when choice factored in. A character, dying of poison, was near an antidote. It was up to me to decide whether or not to treat her, and being an upstanding citizen, I did. But other people may not have chosen the same, dooming that character to death. The choices may have an effect in the world as far as I see it, but I have to wonder how Bethesda will marry these divergent points when multiple people with different choice subsets are playing together.

"The streets are different and the buildings are a little different," Firor said. "We do have to account for third-person camera, because we know people are going to be using it a lot. So our structures tend to be a little taller to allow a lot more mouse movement and things like that." He later noted that the roads are wider to accommodate more people. All of this is to say that while "when you're in Windhelm you feel like you're in Windhelm," but don't expect a perfect replica of Skyrim's recognizable city.

With a 2013 ship date, across both Windows and Mac OS operating systems, having a fundamental feature like an entire camera perspective unplayable after over five years in one stage or another of development is troubling.

Part of the explanation for this disconnect is that, unlike its single-player Elder Scrolls predecessors, Elder Scrolls Online will often require a third-person perspective.

"Since this is an MMO, you will be rolling in and out of first-person some, because especially in PvP you're going to want to see behind you a lot," Firor said. "But if you want that full-on PvE, first-person, you-see-your-hands just like in every other Elder Scrolls game, you can play that way."

That video was more promise than proof right now but if you, like me, were apprehensive that Elder Scrolls Online was more MMO than Elder Scrolls, abandoning the series' unique first-person role-playing formula in favor of something that looked, well ... like an MMO, then there's reason to be hopeful.

During class selection, I was given a choice between Dragonknight, Templar, and Sorcerer. The devs let slip that there will be a fourth class at launch called the Nightblade. In the Elder Scrolls Online, your weapon and armor options aren't restricted by your class. You can build your Sorcerer around using a mix of heavy and medium armor while wielding a greatsword. Or you can run around as a Dragonknight in light armor sporting a restoration staff if that tickles your fancy (and why wouldn't it?). While your class will determine some of the abilities you acquire, it doesn't lock you into a particular playstyle or role.

I decided to break stereotypes and roll an Orc Sorcerer named Vir'chuk Urd, and yes, you can choose a first and last name. The customization options were robust and plentiful containing ample numbers of sliders and colors that will entertain us for hours when ESO launches. I appreciated the age slider that allowed me to instantly transform Vir'chuk into the elderly curmudgeon I imagined him to be. I also felt that he must have a penchant for Tamriel's famous sweetrolls as I happily increased his gut size to the maximum. I would love to have seen the customization options for one of the more bestial races like the Khajiit or Argonians, but I truly can't complain about ESO's character creation.

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Some choices have an impact that reaches beyond mild sprinklings of flavor text. Captain Kaleen enlists your help in assembling a crew to assist with a major heist she is planning. You're given the names of three individuals who have special talents that can be useful in such an endeavor. Crafty Larisa wants you to help her rescue some of her captured crewmates in exchange for her assistance. Jakarn needs to be freed from prison before he'll agree to help you, and Neramo wants you to help him explore an ancient Dwemer ruin.

You can choose to recruit all, some, or none of these characters, and your decision will alter how the heist plays out. Jakarn can steal a key, which makes things a bit easier for you. Neramo can silently deal with a guard who blocks your path, and Crafty Larisa can provide a disguise so you can move around more freely. You can complete the heist on your own, however, giving you the freedom to customize your experience.

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